Alan Watts Biography

As a philosopher, writer, and orator, Alan Watts is credited as one of the foremost scholars to bring Eastern philosophies to a Western audience. Born in rural England, his interest in Eastern art and culture began at a young age. As a teenager, his first written interpretation of Zen was published in London; he would eventually write over twenty-five books. After coming to America in the late 1930s, Alan studied theology in Chicago, and then relocated to upstate New York where he wrote his first pivotal book, The Wisdom of Insecurity. In 1950, Alan moved to San Francisco and began teaching Buddhism at the American Academy of Asian Studies. Shortly thereafter, he was given his own public radio talk show, which expanded nationwide and he toured the country, lecturing and growing his audience. Over the course of his life, Alan was married three times, and had seven children — who continue their father’s legacy through promoting and protecting his books, videos, and lectures. Alan passed away in 1973 in his home on Mount Tamalpais.(Click here to read the full biography.)